RockridgeSound ISR-VT02 iPod/iPhone Vacuum Tube Docking Station

A while back we featured RockridgeSound’s iCooly pivoting stand and now we have this new vacuum tube based iPod/iPhone docking station, known as the RockridgeSound ISR-VT02, which employs two 12AX7 vacuum tubes paired with a high gain 1C amplifier offering up to 24W (2×12W) of output.

Offering a somewhat more substantial form that the previously featured Gakken Self Build Vacuum Tube iPod Amplifier Kit (which comes sans dock) though by no means up to the standard of the Xindak Electronics MT-1 Vacuum Tube Amplifier (which offers a frequency response of 10Hz~40KHz whilst the RockridgeSound ISR-VT02 manages just 42Hz~20KHz) the ISR-VT02 does, in fairness, cost considerably less than the Xindak Electronics MT-1 (circa $382 as opposed to the MT-1’s price tag of around $635) so its ideal for those interested in gaining the warmth of analogue sound whilst being on a restricted budget – though, with its somewhat uninspiring frequency range, it’ll hardly win over true audiophiles.

Uninspiring frequency response aside, apart from an integrated dock for iPods and iPhones, the RockridgeSound ISR-VT02 comes with integrated AM/FM receiver, a separate output for a subwoofer for ‘powerful bass’ as well as S-Video, RCA and headphone outputs and a 3.5mm line in connection allowing you to hook up other non-Apple DAPs as well as other additional audio equipment such as CD players and PMPs.

As stated previously, the RockridgeSound ISR-VT02 iPod/iPhone Vacuum Tube Docking Station, which measures it at 350 x 120 x 290mm and weighs 4.8kg, will set you back around $382 as at the time of writing but appears to be, to the best of our knowledge, only available in Japan at the time of writing.